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Home Ownership & Renting Books
Eric Tyson
Ray Brown
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Published:
March 13, 2018

Selling Your House For Dummies

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Overview

Sell your house in any market

Whether you're selling your home yourself or using a realtor, this helpful guide offers all the information you need to make an otherwise-stressful undertaking go smoothly. In Selling Your House For Dummies, you'll find plain-English, easy-to-follow information on the latest mortgage application and approval processes, the hottest websites used in the house-selling process, and revised tax laws that affect the housing and real estate markets.

From the author team behind America's #1 bestselling real estate book, Home Buying Kit For Dummies, this book offers Eric Tyson and

Ray Brown's time-tested advice, recommendations, and strategies for selling your house given current market conditions. From staging your home to utilizing technology to sell your house directly to home buyers, this trusted resource is packed with tips and ideas to make your home the most appealing house on the block.

  • Prepare your property for the best offer
  • Stage and market your house successfully
  • Negotiate and successfully close the sale
  • Make sense of contracts and forms used in the house-selling process

Get the tried-and-true advice that will help you sell your property!

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About The Author

Eric Tyson, MBA, is the author of Investing For Dummies, Personal Finance For Dummies, and Investing in Your 20s and 30s For Dummies. Ray Brown, a real estate professional for more than 40 years, is the best-selling co-author of Home Buying For Dummies.

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selling your house for dummies

CHEAT SHEET

When it’s time to sell your house, you need all the advice you can get. What you can expect from a Realtor, what you can — and should — research yourself, and what to do after the sale are all important bits of information you need to have.This Cheat Sheet has tips that will help you get ready to sell.20 tips for house sellersIf you’re like most people, your biggest investment is your house.
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Articles from
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Selling real estate is generally stressful. After the ink has dried on the deed and you’ve dropped your house keys into the hands of the new owners, the thought of refocusing on your job and other life responsibilities may seem like a tropical vacation. The last thing you want to do is worry about another real estate-related to-do list.
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Following are some critical issues for you to consider before trying to sell your rental real estate. And, because the profitability (that is, your rental income, less expenses) of your rental property has an enormous impact on the property’s worth, also provided are tips for boosting your property’s profitability well in advance of selling.
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As a house seller, you should anticipate tough questions smart home buyers (or their agents) may ask you. Most sellers and their agents are quick to praise property features such as a remodeled kitchen, new roof, and swimming pool. That’s great, but what home buyers really want to know about are benefits — how house features translate into advantages for them.
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You shouldn’t move and buy a new home before you ask the right questions. Don’t base such a critical decision on assumptions and wishful thinking.Here are the common pitfalls that ensnare those making relocation decisions so you can avoid falling into them yourself: Equating lower housing costs with a lower cost of living: The cost of housing probably accounts for no more than a third of your spending.
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Suppose you don’t want to sell your house first and then buy a new one. Nor do you want to buy a new home before selling the old one. What then? You can use a third option to sell your old house and buy your dream home without terror, chaos, pain, or privation. Your best alternative is to consolidate the sale and purchase into a seamless whole.
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Although spending your entire life in the first home you buy is an unlikely prospect, some people do end up living in the same home for 10, 20, even 30 or more years. If, like most prospective house sellers, you have a choice between staying put and selling, not selling has clear advantages.Selling your house and then buying another one takes a great deal of legwork and research time on your part.
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Knowing how you spend your money now on housing and other items is only half the picture. You also need to know how much you’ll spend after buying your next home. Your expected expenses probably are going to change the most when you sell your current house and buy a new home.To help you determine your expenses after you buy a new home, check out these areas: Mortgage payment: Unless you’ve been squirreling away extra savings while living in your current house, the total amount you’re borrowing through your mortgage (and, therefore, your monthly mortgage payment) will probably increase if you trade up.
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When you’re ready to get down to the nitty-gritty specifics of selecting your own agent, we recommend you interview at least three agents before selecting the lucky winner.To help you find three good agents to interview, tap into the following referral sources: Friends, business associates, and members of professional, social, and religious organizations to which you belong: In short, anyone you know who recently sold a house or is in the process of selling a house in your neighborhood is a source of agent referrals.
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Your personal financial situation clearly is an important factor in deciding whether and when to sell your house, but the state of your local housing market may also influence your decision. Check out the following discussion for the lowdown on the housing market and how it affects your sale. Selling your home in a depressed housing market No one likes to lose money.
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You may need to get a certain amount of money from the sale of your house, or at least know before you can close on a deal how much you’ll receive. Take the time to understand the particular probable proceeds of sale under the following scenarios: You’re strapped for cash because you want to buy a more expensive home.
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Before you set out to trade in your current house for a “better” one, you need to take a good look at your overall budget and determine how much more, if any, of your monthly spending can go toward housing costs. If you haven’t examined your monthly budget in a while, now is the time to do so — before you set the wheels in motion to trade up to a more expensive home.
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Cash flow is the difference between the amount of money that a property brings in and the amount you have to pay out for expenses. Some homeowners-turned-rental-property-owners can’t cover all the costs associated with rental property. In the worst cases, such property owners end up in personal bankruptcy from the drain of negative cash flow (that is, expenses exceed income).
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After you determine that you have spare cash to invest or lend, and you’re looking for taxable interest income, the hard work comes: putting on your detective hat and assessing the merits of lending your money to a prospective buyer who’s more than likely a complete stranger.So how do you, someone who isn’t a mortgage lender by profession, become a savvy credit analyst?
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If you need the services of another advisor, such as a tax or financial advisor, find one who works by the hour and doesn’t have a vested interest — because they sell investments or manage money for an ongoing fee — in your house-selling decision. Few financial advisors work on this basis.Although tax advisors are more likely than financial advisors to work for an hourly fee, they tend to have a narrower-than-needed financial perspective.
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Locating house inspectors is usually quite easy. One good source of property inspectors is either online or printed phone directories under “Building Inspection Services” or “Home Inspection Services.” You can also ask friends and business associates who’ve either bought or sold a house recently for the names of their property inspectors.
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Lawyers are like seat belts. You never know when you may need one. Your deal is rolling merrily along when out of nowhere — slam, bam, wham — you hit a legal pothole and end up in Sue City.The real estate purchase agreement you sign is a legally binding contract between you and the buyer. If you have any questions about the legality of your contract, get a lawyer on your team immediately.
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You don’t have to become an expert in property values, mortgages, tax and real estate law, title insurance, escrow, pest-control work, and construction techniques to play the house-selling game well. Instead, you can hire people who’ve already mastered the skills that you lack.House selling is a team sport. Your job is to lead and coach the team, not play every position.
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Houses in good physical condition sell for top dollar. Fixer-uppers sell at greatly reduced prices because whoever buys them must spend money on repairs to get them back into pristine condition.Even if you’ve lived in your house for the past 20 years, it may have hidden problems you know nothing about. You probably can’t see, for example, whether your house’s electrical system is shot or whether dry rot is turning the woodwork into sawdust or whether the roof is one rainstorm away from springing a Niagara of leaks.
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Selling a house without an agent is doable, but it’s considerably more challenging than it looks. If, after weighing the pros and cons of taking the "for sale by owner" route (FSBO), you decide to attempt to sell your house yourself, be sure to read our final words of wisdom. Educate yourself The things you don’t know generally are what get you into trouble.
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Good agents come in a variety of races, colors, creeds, and ages and may be male or female. All the best listing agents, however, have certain important qualities in common. They do the following: Listen: The best agents know the importance of tailoring the relationship to your wants and needs. Beware of agents who lay out a program without first getting your input.
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Finding house inspectors is usually quite easy. One good source of property inspectors is either online or printed phone directories under “Building Inspection Services” or “Home Inspection Services.” You can also ask friends and business associates who’ve either bought or sold a house recently for the names of their property inspectors.
Read More
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You may want to take on the role of banker to lend money to the buyer of your house. And what would possibly motivate you to do such a thing? Usually one of the following reasons: Desperation: Some houses are difficult to sell because of major warts, and some won’t sell because they’re overpriced. A high interest rate on your money: You have dollar signs in your eyes.
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Each home seller’s personal situation and motivation for selling is unique. The following discussion describes the most common reasons why sellers choose to sell without using an agent. You want to save money on commissions People who take the for sale by owner (FSBO) route often do so to avoid having to pay real estate agent commissions.
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Although selling a house isn’t rocket science or heart surgery, it nevertheless requires some important skills. Even the smartest of "for-sale-by-owner" (FSBO) sellers can get into trouble. This discussion points out a few cons to going the FSBO route. You may not know how to price property Grossly overpriced property isn’t going to sell.
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Whereas some people have clear and compelling reasons for selling their homes, others do so for the wrong reasons. You don’t want to make the financially painful mistake of selling if you don’t have to or can’t afford to. The following discussion offers reasons why you may be better off staying right where you are.
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If you’re in a situation where you really need to sell, as opposed to wanting to sell, by all means put your house on the market. And if you want to sell, and can afford to do so, you should go for it as well. The following discussion offers some solid reasons for selling. You can afford to trade homes Your desire to sell your current house and buy another one may be driven by a force as frivolous as sheer boredom.
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Before you commit to listing your house for sale and sell it, understand what your cost of living will be in the new area. Your property taxes, utilities, food, commuting costs, and many other important items in your personal budget will change when you move into a new home in a different area.If you don’t consider the cost of living in the new location, you may end up facing unpleasant surprises.
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If you’re an older homeowner, your home equity — the difference between the market value of your home and the outstanding mortgage(s) on it — can be one of your largest (if not your largest) assets. Many folks nearing retirement and retirees who own their homes find that their home equity is surprisingly large.
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If you’re happy with your home but want more money to live on in retirement, a reverse mortgage may be for you. If you’re house rich but cash poor, a reverse mortgage enables you to tap into the equity in your home while you still live in it.However, if you’re like most older homeowners, you’ve worked so hard for many years to eliminate a mortgage and get your darn home “paid for” that the thought of reversing that process and rebuilding the debt owed on your home is troubling.
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You may want to take on the role of banker to lend money to the buyer of your house. And what would possibly motivate you to do such a thing? Usually one of the following reasons: Desperation: Some houses are difficult to sell because of major warts, and some won’t sell because they’re overpriced. A high interest rate on your money: You have dollar signs in your eyes.
Read More
Read More
When it’s time to sell your house, you need all the advice you can get. What you can expect from a Realtor, what you can — and should — research yourself, and what to do after the sale are all important bits of information you need to have.This Cheat Sheet has tips that will help you get ready to sell.20 tips for house sellersIf you’re like most people, your biggest investment is your house.
Read More
Read More
You can exclude from taxation a large amount of profits on the sale of a house: up to $250,000 for single taxpayers and $500,000 for couples filing jointly. Conditions are relatively lax: The seller must have used the property as his or her principal residence for at least two of the previous five years. The exclusion is allowed as many times as a taxpayer sells a principal residence but no more than once every two years.
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So which comes first, selling your house before buying a new one, or buying first and then selling? Neither course of action is risk free. The adverse consequences of buying a new home before selling your present house, however, can be far more dire. At worst, buying your dream house before selling your present house may put you in the poorhouse.
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Even the simplest house sale involves many details that must be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction before the sale can be completed. Without someone to bridge the gulf between mutual buyer and seller distrust that exists in most transactions, deals would grind to a halt.Bridging that gulf of distrust, real estate (like other team sports) engages the escrow officer, a referee who keeps the game civilized.
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Real estate marketing activity isn’t flat throughout the year. In most communities, choosing the date you put your house on the market is an important decision. Certain periods of each year are predictably advantageous for sellers. Others are just as predictably less than stellar.No matter where you live in the United States, the real estate marketing calendar generally has two distinct peaks and valleys created by ebbs and flows of activity in your local real estate market.
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When you're seller financing the sale of your house, you need to set the terms — interest rate and fees — on the mortgage. As with collecting the financial data on a borrower, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel.Because agreeing to terms and administering an adjustable-rate loan are complicated, you’re far more likely to make a fixed-rate mortgage.
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When you select a real estate agent, your agent’s broker is part of the package. If your purchase rolls merrily along, you may never meet the broker. But if a truly nasty problem rears its ugly head, guess who you can turn to for a quick fix? Brokers are the invisible grease in problematic transactions.All states issue two markedly different types of real estate licenses: one for salespeople (agents) and one for brokers.
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